Quote:
Originally Posted by Mathgod
Please name some examples of teams that unloaded many of their top prospects and multiple first rounders to load up on one playoff run, and didn't suffer a long stretch of losing shortly thereafter.
And what are some examples of teams that became perrenial contenders (as in legitimate cup threats most years for a period of time longer than a decade) and got there by unloading a ton of futures as soon as they appeared to be in cup contention?
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Chicago comes to mind instantly. After getting their fair share of firsts and landing guys like Toews and Kane, they routinely traded picks, prospects and sometimes even prominent young players (Byfuglien, Panarin, Saad) before and after cups to continue running with the core in several iterations of cup teams. Pittsburgh also loaded up multiple times on quests for glory dealing away young players and picks (Kapanen and a 1st for Phil) in an attempt to lift the Stanley Cup. Both have had dominance for years and years attempting multiple deadline deals until finally succumbing to their aging cores though Pittsburgh is still playing pretty good hockey.
The flames are in an interesting position and it is a gamble no doubt to roll the dice but with the way they’re playing and with how long we’ve waited as fans to see this core playing the way it is I can’t help but want to see them go all in and see what they’ve got. If they succeed I have no doubts that Johnny and Tkachuk sign long term deals and if we don’t I still think there is a good chance we keep both. If Treliving feels like he has a good pulse on things I think the flames add a big time player at the deadline and for good reason.